Vucic concedes to Student List as Serbia records highest turnout in decades

Aleksandar Vucic acknowledged his defeat in Sunday’s snap parliamentary elections, ceding power to a student-led coalition after a campaign marked by the highest voter participation in more than 30 years. The Serbian Progressive Party, led by Vucic, is projected to win 105 of the 250 available seats. The Student List is expected to claim between 135 and 140 seats, effectively securing a majority in the 250-member parliament.

The political shift traces back to November 1, 2024, when the roof of a train station collapsed in Novi Sad, killing 16 people. That tragedy sparked a wave of protests led by university students, professors, doctors, and workers. Over the following two years, these demonstrations evolved into a formal political platform. The Student List campaigned on a promise to combat corruption, depoliticize public institutions, and restore civic rights. Ilija Srdanovic, a professor at the Faculty of Medicine in Novi Sad, served as the movement’s lead figure during the election campaign.

Vucic, who has shaped Serbia’s political direction for over a decade, described his opponents as blockaders seeking to destabilize the country. He resigned as president in September under pressure from the protests and called for early elections. His term was originally scheduled to run until 2027. Although the presidency is constitutionally limited, Vucic maintained dominant influence over state policy and his party. He told supporters after sample votes indicated his loss, "It is clear that we have lost these elections."

Born in Belgrade in 1970, Vucic entered politics in 1993 with the ultranationalist Serbian Radical Party. He is known for his nationalist rhetoric in the 1990s, including a 1995 parliamentary statement where he said, "Kill one Serb, and we will kill 100 Muslims." In 2008, Vucic and Tomislav Nikolic founded the Serbian Progressive Party, aiming to move closer to mainstream European politics. The party took power in 2012, promising to fight corruption and organized crime.

During Vucic’s tenure, the Serbian economy expanded. Unemployment fell from 26 percent to between 8 and 9 percent, while nominal gross domestic product nearly tripled to approximately 90 billion euros. Foreign direct investment rose from 800 million euros in 2012 to a record 5.2 billion euros in 2024. A network of modern motorways was also constructed. However, critics argue that rising wages did not proportionally improve living standards, with public debt and cost of living remaining central points of debate.

Safeta Bisevac, a journalist who has covered Vucic’s career, noted that the leader established near-complete control over the state apparatus. "He made many promises and fulfilled few of them, but in the meantime, he established almost complete control over the state apparatus," Bisevac said. Political scientist Dusko Radosavljevic described the past decade as characterized by systematic pressure on social institutions. He stated that the students gave voice to the justified anger of citizens, noting that intelligence services spent more time monitoring political opponents than fulfilling their actual duties.

The next steps in the parliamentary process will determine the final composition of the government. Vucic’s son, Aleksandar Seselj, was listed on his electoral list, a detail reflecting the continued influence of political families in Serbian politics. The Student List’s victory marks a decisive turn for a movement that began as a response to a specific industrial accident but grew into a nationwide political force.